Cuomo mentions a barrage of lawsuits to come:"I'm sure the people who disagree with this will continue to disagree with this." #fracking* The Economic Fate Of Upstate Could Be Decided Today(YNN)* New York"...only one of the 35 states with extractable natural gas to be missing out on the hydro-fracking boom." -GOP Chairman Ed Cox* The fracking decision is likely to help repair the governor’s relations with the left wing of the Democratic Party, which backed Fordham Law Prof. Zephyr Teachout against him in the September primary. Teachout issued a statement praising the decision. * You can read the DOH report on the public health impact of fracking, which was two years in the making, here. * The New York Times weighs in: “This was not an easy decision, but it was the right one.” * The Journal News called the decision “wise.” * Elected officials and residents in the Southern Tier are shocked after the state banned hydrofracking and didn’t award a casino in the Binghamton area, as the economy in the region remains stagnant, the New York Times writes:

When Conklin, N.Y., town supervisor Jim Finch heard the news, he began drawing up plans to secede from the state. “I’m serious,” said Finch, who oversees a town of some 5,000 people on the Susquehanna River just a few minutes’ drive from the Pennsylvania border. “New York City determines policy in the Southern Tier? That’s baloney.” * Rep. Tom Reed called the fracking decision “devastating” for the Southern Tier, which didn’t get one of four available upstate casino licenses, either. Sen. Cathy Young called it a “punch in the gut” for the region. (Both lawmakers are Republican). * Cuomo said he will work to develop an alternative economic plan for the Southern Tier region that is now cut off from the fracking industry after the state decided drilling was too risky.* Lawmakers and officials from the Southern Tier expressed disbelief, disappointment and shock after the state banned fracking and declined to build a casino in the region, with some questioning whether the state is committed to jump-starting the region's economy, Gannett Albanyreports: * Cuomo bowed to green activists and the Hollywood crowd when he banned fracking, depriving impoverished areas of the state—such as the Southern Tier—casinos while banning a safe and proven new energy technology that would create jobs, the Post writes: * Republican state Sen. Tom Libous criticized the move to ban hydrofracking in the state as “the easy way out,” but acknowledged it’s unlikely there will be a legislative response to Cuomo’s decision, State of Politicsrepots: * Cuomo’s hydrofracking ban is a blow to the Southern Tier’s declining economy, and his alternatives will inevitably involve direct government “investments” and lost revenues from tax-free zones, the Empire Center’s E.J. McMahonwrites:*On fracking and casinos, Cuomo says, buck stops elsewhere(Capital)* New York’s decision to ban hydrofracking for health reasons could lead to roadblocks for future development in the energy sector in other states, according to Rep. Tom Reed, the Buffalo News reports: * Cuomo Distances Self from Big Fracking and Casino Announcements(NY1)

* The fate of two fracking lawsuits
before the state Court of Appeals that will have ramifications for
energy companies and municipalities that have passed moratoriums or bans
on the practice hinges on legislation passed in 1981, the Journal
reports: http://goo.gl/8yRndc* New York City Comptroller Scott
Stringer and Otsego Town Councilwoman Julie Huntsman write in the Times
Union that cities and towns should be able to ban fracking, in light of
the State Court of Appeals hearing arguments in the case: http://goo.gl/YMmEYp

Former Assemblyman Jerry Kremer: “New York State is rapidly developing the reputation as the place where energy production projects go to die.”

* State GOP Chair Ed Cox is calling on
Cuomo to detail what was discussed in two closed-door meetings last year
between the governor’s top advisers and leaders of the state’s
hydrofracking review, Gannet Albany reports: http://goo.gl/nSa84O

* U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer said on NBC’s Morning Joe
that most Democrats across the country support hydrofracking, but he
was careful to defer to Gov. Andrew Cuomo in New York, Gannett Albany
reports: http://goo.gl/Nx6qYK

* The Times Union writes that the
state’s deliberative study on hydraulic fracturing is appropriate to
ensure the safety and health of residents: http://goo.gl/RcS8oI

Cuomo in Utica says he does not believe there needs to be a do-over of the fracking review: "I feel good about where we are."* Cuomo doesn't see a need for fracking review do-over Cuomo said he’s comfortable with the
state’s review of hydraulic fracturing, and that he was not aware of a
letter sent by Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo asking for a more
comprehensive review of the potential health impacts, Gannett Albany reports:

Cuomo Flacking Cuomo targeted over fracking opposition(NYP) State Republican Party Chairman Ed Cox is planning an all-out attack against Cuomo a day after the November 5th election for caving to environmentalists by not approving “fracking” for natural gas in the state’s Southern Tier